Under the current version of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), full-time employees are defined as those who work a minimum of 30 hours per week. The American Hotel and Lodging Association (AH&LA) is urging lawmakers to increase the minimum to “allow for a definition of full-time status that is more in keeping with current employment practices,” according to a statement sent out by the AH&LA.
“Increasing the healthcare law’s current definition of full-time status would be a win-win for hard-working Americans and their employers, and would benefit our entire economy,” said Katherine Lugar, AH&LA president/CEO. “Employees would have the ability to work more hours and increase their take-home pay, employers would be able to provide more generous health coverage—without prohibitive premium costs—to full-time employees, and lower-income employees would have greater access to affordable coverage options.”
The statement was made following the hearing of the House of Representatives Subcommittee on Health and Technology to examine the current definition and the impact it has on small businesses nationwide.
“We appreciate Chairman Collins convening today’s hearing and urge Congress to build upon this first step to thoroughly examine the problematic impacts of the ACA full-time definition as currently written,” continued Lugar. “At a time when our still-fragile economic recovery is being hamstrung by gridlock in Washington, we would hope that Congress would take every opportunity to strengthen the ability of our nation’s small businesses to provide good jobs and good benefits for all employees. Now is the time for us to focus on policies that drive economic growth and job creation; redefining full-time status is an important step in that effort.”
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